The Beginning
by CLAIRE-ROX
Summary: The story of how Jack and Claire got together. Rated PG13 for safety's sake. Please Review!
1. Part One

Jack McCoy was in a good mood. Winning always put him in a good mood and he had this case dead to rights. The murderer, a scumbag by the name of Alvin Myers, was going down hard. It was just too bad, in his opinion anyway, that there was no death penalty in the state of New York.

He snapped his brief case shut and exited his office, heading strait for the elevator. He noted with pleasure that his assistant, Bryan Coal, had already left for the courthouse. That boy was going places. He was a damn good attorney--very dedicated and competent. Jack liked working with him. He was always a step ahead of where he needed to be and that was always a good thing when you worked with Jack.

He entered the elevator and pressed the button for the first floor. The metal doors hung open for a minute and then slowly began to ease shut. A second after the doors closed, the elevator jerked and began it's slow descent down the shaft. It reached floor eight and the doors opened again, letting in a group of three men, all of whom carrying brief cases and wearing solemn looks. They were young men, one with jet black hair and the other two with hair that resembled more of a chestnut color. Jack surmised them to be ADAs, just as Bryan was. Not surprising, the majority of the attorneys in the DA's office were ADAs anyway.

The elevator made two more stops at floors seven and three before it reached the first floor, now thoroughly packed with people. Jack exited and started briskly down the hallway toward where the entrance was located. He was still focused on his impending victory. He'd written out his closing statement a few days before and it was a real winner. Top notch. He felt confident and particularly satisfied with himself. It was evident by the bounce in his step.

He turned a corner and spotted Ben Stone walking toward him. There was a tall brunette walking next to and slightly behind him. He considered stopping to talk with the man for a moment but he honestly didn't have the time.

Ben and what Jack assumed to be his new assistant, a rookie who's name he'd been told and couldn't quite remember, neared and he got his first good look at her. She was very good- looking, he noted, with large, expressive chocolate brown eyes and an innocent look about her.

His eyes continued the down her entire body. They lingered for a moment on her legs. He could fantasize about those legs all day. To say nothing of the rest of her.

He found the idea of stopping to talk with Ben suddenly more appealing, only this time it wasn't because he wanted to shoot the breeze with another able EADA. He was curious about Ben's assistant, who's name, he suddenly remembered, was Claire Kincaid. Unfortunately he still couldn't spare the time.

As he passed the two he gave Ben a polite nod before locking eyes with Claire and doing the same. Her eyes widened in surprise and she gave him something of a quizzical look. She was obviously more than used to being ignored by a lot of the more experienced attorneys in the office and his politeness had surprised her. Her gaze followed him as he passed by, her head turning for a couple minutes to watch him disappear.

She turned back to Ben. "Who was that?" She remembered seeing the man on news casts for some high profile case but the details were fuzzy. She knew she'd seem him, though. The intensity he possessed managed to transmit itself even through the television screen and cameras. She was a little surprised that she couldn't place the man though. It seemed that she should know him.

"That was Jack McCoy, Claire."

Well that name certainly rung a bell. McCoy was quite famous in the New York legal circle. He was supposed to be crafty, a tad bit dishonest, arrogant and give better closings than almost any other attorney. He, like Ben and a few others, was a legend of sorts. She felt more than a little embarrassed by her memory lapse.

"Oh," was all she could manage to say.

Ben looked down at her and smiled. He'd known Jack for over two decades and he knew what the man was all about. He knew what it meant when Jack took notice of some green attorney around the office. From the rosy tinge lighting Claire's face, he knew that Claire knew what was going on in Jack's mind too, and from the way she was avoiding his gaze he knew that the feeling was a mutual one. That wasn't a shock. Jack seemed to have that effect on women. They naturally seemed to flock to him. He honestly didn't know how the man did it.

Well, it looked like he was probably going to be talking with Jack more often now. Jack had taken an interest in Claire--that assured that he would. It was okay, though. As long as he kept Claire under his wing, she should be fairly safe from McCoy's influence. He liked Jack but all of his ex-girlfriends ended up resigning from their job at the DA's office soon after the relationship was broken off. Claire had too bright a future here for him to let her fall victim to that.

Even as they entered the elevator, Claire still wouldn't look at him.

These office parties were always really slow in the beginning. They picked up later when a few people got drunk and decided to act like they were Madonna on a table but before then it was a lot of small talk. A bit of dancing too, but it was just polite. Nothing terribly interesting.

It was nice to be able to let your hair down a bit though and Claire welcomed the chance to catch up with some of her friends in other departments. With the long hours she didn't get to see some of them much.

So they laughed and joked and talked about nothing at all. It was fun. There were at least fifteen or twenty of them and they were all a bit tipsy. It was still early though and none of them had gone off the wall yet.

Anna Herbst finished with a joke, a particularly good one about some woman killing her husband. The group roared with laughter and some of the men used the opportunity to brush up against the more attractive ladies in the group. Claire got it from both sides.

Not too long after the party had started Ben walked over to the group. Just as the gentleman he was, he asked Claire for a polite dance, making sure there was enough space between them on the dance floor for it to be friendly and not construed to be what it was not. They had a very father/daughter-like relationship. There was nothing to it and people seemed to know. That was good. After all that Joel Thayer stuff Claire had worried but luckily it had been for nothing.

They talked aimless as they swayed around the dance floor and then went to get a few drinks. Ben introduced her to a number of people. After a while she lost count of how many. That was one of the problems with these things. There were so many people you couldn't keep track of them.

She usually spent an hour or two with Ben before going and mingling some more. There was no reason to do something different today. Ben was pleasant company and meeting some of the people he knew was very smart career-wise.

She spotted a familiar face move toward them. It was McCoy--a man who's name she would never again forget. He ordered a Scotch and then moved casually over to Ben. He seemed quite at ease. Claire couldn't tell whether he'd already had a drink or if he was just always that calm and confident.

"Ben," he said and gave the man a nod.

"It's good to see you, Jack," said Ben amiably. "This is my assistant, Claire Kincaid. Claire, this is Executive ADA Jack McCoy."

"It's very nice to meet you," said Claire, taking the hand he offered.

"How are you doing this evening Jack?" asked Ben.

McCoy gave an amiable nod. "I'm doing okay. I heard about what happened on the Brown case Ben. It's too bad."

"Well you can't win them all. If we did then there'd be no justice."

"And no raises," McCoy joked, with a broad smile.

He had a cute smile, Claire noted.

Ben laughed a bit and nodded.

"I assume you second-chaired that case," McCoy said to Claire, making a gesture with the hand holding the Scotch. "How long have you been Ben's assistant?"

"For a few months now."

"I see."

Another man walked up to Jack. He was a tall, man with what looked like the body of a lifeguard under his clothes. He gave Claire the once over and then proceeded to speak to McCoy.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, Jack."

McCoy threw Claire a look that said he was a bit disappointed he had but then it vanished and he turned back to the other man. "Not at Bryan. If you'll excuse me, Ben."

McCoy and the other man, Bryan Coal, walked off into the crowd. Ben looked back at Claire and noticed her eyes following, not Bryan as one would expect, but Jack.

Of course Ben figured he probably shouldn't be too shocked. She'd seemed to like Jack when she'd seen him that time in the hallway too. Now finding out about she and Thayer, that had been a shock.

Ben saw someone else he knew in the crowd and brought Claire over to introduce her. He figured Claire would like this woman--she'd worked hard to pull herself up the ladder and Claire would respect that.

She could talk with the woman and get her mind off Jack.


	2. Part Two

For what seemed to be the millionth time Jack noticed Bryan's absence. It had been a number of weeks since his now ex-assistant had left the DA's office to join one of the more prominent firms in the city and his presence was still missed.

_Probably because I haven't bothered to get myself another assistant_, Jack thought. He'd been used to having someone extremely competent aiding him on his cases and there was no one in the current pool of possible assistants that struck him as being up to the job. He knew he was going to have to break down sometime and just grab one of the newer attorneys that seemed to be doing well and train them up from scratch but . . .

He'd been hoping to get Claire somehow. She was exactly what he liked in his assistants. She was young, pretty, smart and, apparently, prone to getting involved with bosses.

It was well known around the office that Jack had gotten involved with all of his female assistants. His reasons for wanting Claire to assist him were no different than anyone would expect.

Despite his abstract hope of sleeping with the lovely Claire, he actually hadn't pursued her much. Not in any real sense anyway. With Bryan gone he'd had too much work to get done to worry about trivial things like his personal life. Work always had and always would come first. That was one of the reasons he tended to date assistants and other coworkers. It was convenient. It was true that he liked smart women but work was his _life_. He needed someone who shared his work with him, even if they were handling cases different than his own.

He took a long look at the files and papers piling on his desk. _I really need that new assistant. This is just too much_, he thought wearily, rubbing his eyes. Whenever he really needed someone to help he could always borrow someone from another office but he couldn't do that all the time. It was frustrating to be without the kind of help he was used to.

He threw down his pencil and exited his office. He would take a few minutes to walk around the office and clear his head. Then he'd get back to work. No problems.

He passed by a group of cubicles and a number of voices floated toward him. He paused to listen. Paying attention to what the grapevine was saying was usually quite beneficial.

". . . Right after some witness got killed."

"He'd been at this a long time, you'd think he would have gotten used to the idea."

"I heard his conscience just couldn't handle it."

"Do you know what's happening to his cases?"

"All being reassigned, I guess."

"What about that good-looking chick working with him?"

"Kincaid? I dunno. I hope she gets transferred here. She's sure got a pair of legs on her."

It hadn't taken too much for Jack to figure out what was going on. Ben had quit. Ben Stone had quit.

And Claire was without a boss. She was totally free and that meant that he could get _exactly_ what he wanted.

Jack turned around and began hurrying toward Adam's office. Claire was a good attorney and he wanted to make sure that he was the first to put in a request.

He made it to Adam's office in record time. He rapped quickly on the door and heard Adam's voice answer the knock from inside.

"Come in."

Jack opened the door and walked in.

Adam looked up from whatever he was doing to see who'd come in his office.

Jack wasn't about to start screwing around. He knew what he wanted and he intended to get it. This was only step one.

"I'll make this quick, Adam," he said, sitting down in a chair right in front of Adam's desk. "I want to request Claire Kincaid. I've needed a new assistant for a couple weeks now and she seems up to the job."

Adam wasn't stupid. Jack never changed. He always wanted the best looking and smartest girl he could find working with him--for reasons other than the job.

"I see."

Adam wasn't buying it. What had he expected? Jack waited for Adam to give him more of a reaction.

"I'll think about it," Adam said after a couple of minutes.

"This isn't what you think it is, Adam."

"Sure," Adam responded. "After all the others, I believe that."

Jack sighed. Unfortunately Adam wasn't proof that anyone could be elected for anything. He'd forgotten the hard time he was going to be getting for this.

"I need someone competent, and she's got experience."

"Like I said, I'll think about it. Now don't you have anything better to do than pester me about Miss Kincaid?"

Jack got up and went back to his office.

Claire made her way to Adam Schiff's office. His secretary had called her a couple minutes ago to tell her that the DA had asked for her to meet him in his office. She'd left right away. No one with an ounce of sense kept the DA waiting.

She knocked on Adam's door.

"Come in."

She opened the door and stepped into the office. "You wanted to see me, sir?"

"Yes I did," he answered. "Take a seat." He made a rather broad motion toward the couch sitting near the window.

She moved forward and sat down, then fixed Adam with her gaze. She had no idea why she was here. The only clue she had was Adam's serious tone. Gee, that was something entirely different.

"What do you know about Jack McCoy?"

As in good-looking EADA Jack McCoy? The one she _hadn't _recognized, but should have, when he acknowledged her in the hallway about ten months back? The one Ben had introduced her to at the office Christmas party? That Jack McCoy?

"Just what most people know. He's an EADA. He's good at finding creative interpretations of the law and he's supposed to be a wonderful speaker."

Adam nodded. "Anything else?"

Claire nodded slowly and sucked a breath. She knew other things but she hated repeating office gossip. It didn't seem professional. "He's supposed to have dated a number of his coworkers, some of which being his assistants," she answered slowly.

Adam nodded again, confirming the rumor. "Yes, Jack has quite a reputation."

Well she could see that.

He continued. "He's a damn fine attorney, though, as you've already heard. You could learn a lot from him."

_Whoa. Wait a minute. Does he mean I'm gonna be working with Jack McCoy?_

He certainly seemed to be saying that. Of course, she could be wrong.

"He's put in a request for you to be his assistant."

_Yeah, he's definitely saying I'm going to be working with Jack McCoy._

"How would you feel about working with him?"

Her first reaction to the question was to be a bit surprised. She didn't think DAs normally asked inexperienced ADAs such as herself about things like this. She supposed McCoy's reputation had a lot to do with it.

How _did_ she feel about it?

Honestly, she was a little apprehensive about the motives of a man with a reputation like that but she had to admit Adam was right. She would really learn a lot from McCoy. Ben had left too soon for her to learn everything she should from him.

Past the reputation, though, she was thrilled about the idea. She wasn't about to make the same mistake as she had with Joel Thayer and she had a lot to gain from this. Besides, she was curious about what McCoy was really like. Rumors never truly portrayed what a person, especially one as apparently complex as McCoy, was really like.

Her answer was immediate. "I'd like it."

Adam seemed a bit surprised but he said nothing about it. She waited to see what he said. He was still likely to tell her to just go back to her desk. Tell her that he was denying McCoy's request. She wouldn't blame him. This was a sticky situation. From his point of view some sort of personal involvement had to look likely, and after all the trouble her last affair had caused the DA's office . . .

Well, it probably _would_ be smart to deny the request. Too bad.

"I'm going to honor his request then. Move your things into the desk across from Jack's office and then go see him."

She couldn't believe it. He'd decided to do it. Apparently he'd decided to trust her and her judgment. He realized that her affair with Joel was just a byproduct of her age and naivety.

She left his office with a small smile on her face.

Adam, himself though . . . He could only hope he'd made the right decision when he let Jack have her as his assistant.

It didn't look as though there wouldn't be a problem on her end, though. There had been that thing with Joel Thayer but it seemed to him that she learned her lesson that time around. He didn't think he had to worry about her to much. It was Jack that was going to be the problem.

Unlike Miss Kincaid, Jack had never had one of his little office affairs blow up on him. His marriage had ended in flames but since his ex-wife was no longer working at the time it really didn't count. He was still just as into the idea as he had ever been--despite what he'd told Adam when he'd made his request. Jack could be a very easy read at times. Even under that poker face of his.

Jack wanted Kincaid for reasons that began south of the border and Adam knew he would be very focused on his goal. It was Jack's intensity that made him both a great prosecutor and an office menace.

Adam worried about what kind of resilience Miss Kincaid would have against such intensity. He didn't know her very well at all. She seemed to no be too much of a push-over--she and Adam had actually exchanged a few heated words over the course of time--but he knew so very little about her that he really couldn't say. Would she be able to stay so focused on work that she would take no notice of his advances? Would she resist them?

Or would she fall prey to his charms like the women before her?

He'd let her have the job for a reason though. While she did have the history he felt it would more likely detour her than be a predictor of her future behavior. She had more reason than anyone else Jack might request to keep her distance.

It was a gamble and Adam knew it. He was planning on keeping as close an eye as he could on them but he did have other things to do. A lot of them. He was the District Attorney of Manhattan County and there were a lot of more pressing things to do than watching to see if his top EADA and that EADA's assistant were playing footsy behind his back.

He would do his best, though, to keep an eye out for a problem. He liked to run a tight ship. He didn't want anything gumming up the works and he didn't want the media to find out and crucify him because of a problem it caused.

If those two did end up sharing a bed they sure as hell better hope he didn't find out by a lapse in their work. If he did they'd both be looking for new jobs. Even Jack. Adam wasn't going to tolerate any of that no matter how good of a prosecutor Jack was. It hadn't been a problem in the past but if it became one now it _would_ be dealt with.


	3. Part Three

The first thing Claire had done when she'd gone into Jack's office was make it clear that she'd heard about his affairs with previous assistants and she didn't intend to follow in their footsteps.

He'd been very receptive and good-natured about all of it. He'd simply told her she'd made her point and then gotten down to business. "Can we get to work?" he'd said and all she'd been able to do was smile for a few moments. She was pleasantly surprised by Jack. He wasn't overly slick or charming, just friendly and a bit flirty. He'd said he understood that she wasn't going to sleep with him and then he'd flashed her a very cute, somewhat goofy smile. A smile she'd found to be both amusing and endearing.

Then, of course, he'd told her he was sure that they wouldn't be having any problems. She wasn't quite sure what to think of that. It was quite a suggestive thing to say and she hadn't been quite sure how to take it then either. Maybe she was making too much of it. For all she knew, it could have been a number of years since he'd slept with an assistant. She decided to check on it when she found the time.

As for the statement itself, it was his timing that made the difference. The fact that he'd said it right then made it that much more suggestive. It made it sound as though he didn't anticipate a problem _in that area_. Did that mean he wasn't going to try anything, or he was just sure she would give in? She had no idea. She just hoped it meant the first rather than the latter. It would make both of their lives far easier.

She couldn't be sure though. He'd . . . Well, _they'd_ been flirting all day. Of course it could mean nothing. How many times had she flirted with someone just for the hell of it?

But what about his reputation though? That really made for a shadow of doubt, didn't it? She'd known his reputation could make for a problem. She'd just never figured it would make for a problem quite like this. She'd figured he'd be a bit more . . . seductive, not just flirt with her. She'd figured he'd try something more around Joel's tactics. She'd figured he'd be less of a tease. She'd caught him giving her some pretty intense looks at times but otherwise tease was exactly right.

And as far as the looks went she couldn't be sure their intensity meant anything at all. He was a very intense person and the fact that he didn't look away or try to cover up the looks was a bit confusing. It made what was going on behind those dark eyes hard to figure out.

That was only the beginning of her romantic problems with Jack though. Looks and confusing signals were just the tip of the iceberg. Her other problem was even more . . . problematic. She couldn't think of a better word for it.

She'd realized just how bad it really was earlier today when they'd had oral arguments on a motion. Jack had argued their case eloquently and brilliantly and as she was watching him she realized that over the course of the week she'd been working with him she'd managed to develop a nice little crush on him. Oh, it wasn't a revolution by any means, not when she thought of the times she'd ended up watching him just because she liked the way he looked and moved, but it was a bit more of an issue than she'd hoped.

For a second time, she'd been stupid. She'd allowed herself to get to know Jack and that was the sounding of her death knell. Intelligence, craftiness, the ability to guide and nurture . . . Those were some of the things she was attracted to and she'd allowed herself to get close enough to him to see all those things . She should have realized the problems this could cause. She should have at least thought of that before she'd said she'd like to work with him.

Well, this wasn't a total bust--just a setback. She was a grown woman and perfectly capable of controlling herself. She'd had worse crushes and she was already learning things about the law from Jack.

She'd get around this. It could prove to be very challenging but she would.

"She says that they won't have any trouble getting an indictment and to arrest the guy. Then this prick McCoy says he'd have an easier time getting an indictment on a ham sandwich and that we've got a half-made case! He blames us, not her."

"Well, what can you do, Mike?" said Lennie. "He thinks we screwed up, so what? We talk to the cab driver and let her worry about the kid."

"Doesn't that bother you, Lennie? He just blamed us!"

"Let it go."

"You wanna just sit around while he plays footsy with her and blames us for this stuff?"

"I'm just gonna do my job and not worry about it. Why don't you try it?"

"It's sick Lennie," said Mike as he shoved his hands distemperedly into his pockets. "He's what, twenty years older than her? That's like you looking at Julia."

"Ah, but I'm not looking at my daughter and neither is he. It happens a lot. Wait until you're fifty."

Mike rolled his eyes. "So he's your hero then?"

"Hey, I admire any guy who can get a girl like that to look at them period, and I've seen her look more than once," said Lennie matter-of-factly.

"When I'm fifty you can go ahead and kill me."

"Don't be so jealous, Mikey."

"I'm not jealous of _McCoy_."

"Yeah, whatever," said Lennie, as he stepped onto the sidewalk outside the building.

Mike just shut-up. Let Lennie admire the guy all he wanted. He maintained his opinion on the subject--and his feeling about how McCoy had blamed him for something that wasn't his fault.

He didn't like McCoy. He liked Kincaid just fine but if there wasn't enough for an indictment then it was her job to tell them. That's why she was there in the first place. Just because McCoy decided that he liked making eyes at her they were getting the rap for all this.

He was a cop. He was used to being treated like shit. That didn't mean he had to like it though. That didn't mean he should just take it either. Lennie might and that was great for him but he knew what was going on and he was at least going to say something. Not to McCoy--he'd had his ass chewed enough today--but spouting off a bit to Lennie had helped a bit.

Oh, well. He'd do his job and interview the damn cabbie. Let them worry about the rest of the damn case if they knew so damn much.

Jack had started working on Claire right away. He'd started out with a little flirting, just testing the water. She'd flirted right back. That smile she'd had on when he'd asked if they could start working had lingered pleasantly in his head for hours.

Not more than a couple weeks later, they'd graduated from banter and sly remarks to lingering touches. He knew she had reservations about any sort of involvement with him, after all she'd said as much when they first met, but he could see the wall she'd put up beginning to crumble. He could feel it when she let a hand rest on his arm longer than it should or when she stood a bit closer than was professionally appropriate.

He planned to ask her out for a drink tonight. She'd go. It was perfectly appropriate, coworkers often grabbed a drink together. He'd waited long enough to ask as to not seem too forward or eager. She was charmed by him anyway. He knew that. She'd probably have been more than happy to go even if he had asked earlier. It was better to not take risks though. Lost ground was hard to recover.

He glanced out a window toward Claire. She was working peacefully at her desk and he guessed she was probably planning on working late as usual. Well, he could wait on her. Courtesies like that always seemed to go a long way with women.

He finished putting a few files in his bag and left his office, turning off the light as he went. He walked over to Claire's desk and sat down in a chair nearby. She looked up, having heard him walk over.

She pushed some hair away from her face and questioned him with her eyes but stayed silent, waiting for him to speak.

"Would you like to grab a drink with me before you head home?" he asked.

Her eyes lit up and she smiled. "Yeah. I just need to finish up a couple of things. Can you wait?"

"Not a problem."

"Good. I'll probably only be about five or ten minutes."

"Take as much time as you need, Claire. I'm not in a rush. I've got all night."

There it was again. Those suggestive comments. At times it seemed to Claire that everything they said to one another had some sort of double meaning to it.

"Good," she said, flirting back just as she always did. Always. She always flirted with him. She couldn't help but do it.

He smiled. He'd won again.

Claire couldn't take her eyes off Jack. He was always good in his closings but this was amazing. She had no idea what had gotten into him but whatever it was she really liked it. It was _very_ sexy.

He had a real edge today. He was so sure and righteous that it was almost impossible not to believe everything he was saying. There was so much passion and power in his words. She knew that there was not a person in the room that wasn't absolutely captivated by him.

Right now, at this very moment, she had so much respect for him. He seemed to be everything that she wanted to be, everything she believed in. She admired that. She _had_ to admire that.

Admiration, respect and pure, unadultered, _passion_. That was what she felt right now. She wanted him so badly right now. She couldn't remember ever having thoughts like this about him before. She'd always been able to stop herself but somehow Jack had opened the flood gates and now the water was pouring forth.

Jack could see her looking at him through the corner of his eye. He could feel the hidden passion that filled her gaze burning through him like a wildfire. It was exciting, tintalating, and it was making his closing even better than before. The more passion in her eyes, the more excited he became taking his performance up another notch and turning her on ever more. It was a continuing cycle and he knew that were they not standing in a court room in front of all these people they would be all over each other rather than doing their best to be professional and restrained.

He flicked his eyes toward where she was sitting. She was still wearing that same expression. She was covering it as best she could and with everyone else in the room captivated by his words there was no fear of her getting caught like this. The look was there though. He could feel it, and use it to peer into her soul. Peer to the place where she wanted him. A place she was desperately trying to keep hidden from sight.

He turned away from the jury, a motion used for emphasis but it had another point to it as well. He caught Claire's gaze in his own and made damn sure she knew that he felt the same way she did. He wanted her to feel the heat just the way he was.

After a moment of surprise, Claire turned a brilliant shade of red and looked quickly down. She fervently hoped that no one had noticed that.

She couldn't believe he'd done that. She couldn't believe she'd done that. She couldn't believe she was letting her emotions run away with her. Again.

She glanced around quickly to see if anyone had seen them. First she looked toward the jury, who seemed oblivious to anything or anyone but Jack. It seemed they had not noticed anything at all. She checked the audience as well. They were in the same state as the jury.

She peered up at the judge for a moment and it became quite evident to her that someone had indeed noticed. The old woman was giving her a very disapproving stare. She obvious thought there was more there. In a way she was right, of course. He was more than a boss to her. There were feelings there but no more. The judge, though, seemed to think it didn't stop there.

_Perfect_, thought Claire sarcastically.

Jack finished and sat down. He felt confident about their verdict. He knew that it was never a sure thing with juries, it never would be, but after a performance like that he couldn't see it going another way.

He resisted the urge to flash Claire a smile. He knew doing that could hurt them in the eyes of the jury. She looked like she was a bit occupied with her own thoughts anyway.

When they left the courtroom that day he could tell things between them had changed. So could she. Before they'd been coworkers. Friendly and flirty ones but coworkers none the less. Now there was more. The dam that Claire had built to keep him out was swiftly crumbling before both of their eyes.

It was only a matter of time now.


	4. Part Four

"That's her!" a middle-aged woman whispered hurriedly to a younger woman.

"Who?" asked the girl, a tall brunette.

"Claire Kincaid."

"That's Jack McCoy's assistant, right?"

"She's more than that," the older woman answered.

"He's sleeping with this one too?" The older woman had told the girl about McCoy before.

"Mmhmm."

"Figures," the younger responded with rolled eyes. "Where'd you hear it?"

"Anna from the tenth floor," the woman answered in a whisper.

"So she's seen them . . ." the girl faded off, a curious look painted across her face.

"She says they never quit flirting."

"You'd they'd try and keep a lid on things."

"Uh huh."

Whispers followed Claire everywhere these days. She and Jack were everyone's favorite piece of gossip. People with reputations like their's were often very popular topics of conversation. Everyone had an opinion or theory about what was actually going on between them. The most thoroughly accepted rumor was that they spent the late hours in the office doing things other than working.

Claire had found that the people in Narcotics had the biggest mouths of anyone. They seemed to really enjoy discussing her personal affairs. Maybe all those drugs they dealt with meant that they were so bored that gossip was the only way to keep themselves from going out of their skulls. It was funny. She knew that without Jack and Joel they wouldn't be saying so much as three words about her. They wouldn't care and they would leave it alone. Oh, well. Things were what they were.

The rumor mill had been whirling faster than usual lately though and she knew why. She and Jack had been pretty tight recently. They never quit flirting these days. A person would have to be pretty damn blind not to notice that.

Then there was their after work arrangements. The nights they didn't work late they usually grabbed a drink together and the nights they stayed late they _always_ ate together. On the nights he kept her extra late he always insisted on buying her dinner, sometimes at a nice restaurant. There had been more than a few nights when she'd come home from the office feeling as though she'd been on a really great date. She was even spending more time in front of the mirror getting ready in the morning.

It scared her. It scared her to death.

She was falling for him hard and fast. The control she had over her emotions was fading at an absolutely amazing rate. Right now, more than ever, she could understand how his other assistants had ended up as his bed-mates. She didn't want to make that kind of mistake. The idea that Jack could be Joel Thayer all over again was terrifying.

It wasn't fair. It wasn't fair for her to feel like this about Jack. It wasn't fair at _all_. Not when she couldn't do anything about it. All she really could do was flirt with him, and she knew that even that--not to mention their nice dinners or frequent drinks--was ill advised. Flirting made it worse but she really couldn't help it. She really liked him.

Jack was different than Joel. She knew how Jack played the dating game, both with her and, thanks to the grapevine, previous assistants. He did seem to care about the women, at least as friends, although that could be an act.

The problem was she really knew very little about him. He'd rarely said anything about growing up or his personal life, with the exception of talking about his daughter whom he seemed to spoil rotten. What she did know about him was how he worked. She knew about how good he was at bending the law and, to some extent, a bit about his ethics, which were highly confusing to her. As far as she could tell he was basically honest. If he felt that he could find a legitimate reason to do or not to do something he blazed right ahead. If he couldn't he would grudgingly do as he would supposed to. The way she saw it he didn't believe in dishonesty, he believed in creativity and he was _very_ creative. He could find a way out of almost anything he didn't want to do.

But he did seem to be honest. Didn't that mean she could trust him? She wasn't sure. She wasn't sure about much of anything right now. Not where Jack was concerned

Either way she _was_ curious about him and lately she'd started prying into his life a bit when he talked to her. She hadn't really found out much. He was fairly tight-lipped in some areas, especially concerning growing up, and she didn't want to push too much. She didn't feel it was her place. He _was_ her boss after all. She couldn't quite treat him like everyone else, though she often forgot that and did. He never seemed to mind but she felt she should at least try to toe the line.

She half-heartedly pulled a file toward her. Eh, today was just one of those days. She didn't feel like working and she couldn't get Jack off her mind.

She looked into his office. He was at his desk, for once. Another thing she'd discovered about Jack was that he preferred to be sitting on his couch rather than at his desk if given the choice. He liked to be comfortable whenever possible. Most the time when they worked late he was in his jeans and a button down rather than his suit.

She liked it better that way. It let her relax more with him when they worked, and she liked how he looked in those jeans. Jack was sexy no matter what he was wearing but the jeans were godly.

No, no, no. She shouldn't be thinking about that. She should be working. _Working_. Like he was.

Goddamn it, she'd done it again. She'd started thinking about him when she shouldn't be.

None of this mattered. How she felt about him didn't matter and she needed to ignore it and do was she was payed to do. None of this was going to be coming out and it certainly wasn't going anywhere so the best thing to do was work and not think about it.

She sneaked one last glance into his office. She stared at him for a long moment then finally started working again. Doing exactly what she was supposed to be doing.

". . . So I hear these stories from him about these divorces, and most of it's just your average stuff with bitter people but sometimes he'll start talking about the ones who treat their kids like footballs--"

"It's not right," agreed Jack. "I can't imagine treating your kids like that and _claiming_ to love them."

"Exactly! I'm sure you wouldn't have done that to your daughter and I know my parents never did that to me."

"And your parents had the money to really make a fight of it too," Jack pointed out.

"Yeah, they did," she agreed. "I'm just glad they managed to agree on something. I was young enough that I didn't understand most of it anyway. A custody battle would've went way over my head."

"When did your parents divorce, Claire? I don't think you've ever told me."

"I think it was finalized when around the time I was eight. They'd been split up for a good while though. There was a a lot to argue over with all that money--Daddy made it working and Mom was born into hers."

"Your mother got custody?" he ventured.

Claire shook her head to signal a 'no'. "Joint custody. I liked staying with my father whenever possible, though."

"Yeah, I remembered you mentioning that. I just figured it meant you were with your mother most of the time." He smiled. "So you were a daddy's girl?"

"I guess," she said. "I'm not sure though. I think it was more that I was always seeking his approval."

Jack gave her a look that urged her to explain.

"My father was one of those driving forces. He was always pushing me to do my best, especially if he saw a future for me there. That was what he'd done and it was important to him. It was important not to rely on someone else for him and therefore for me. So he'd push me really hard and only give his approval when I'd reached the highest goal. It was a rare thing to get from him. I lived just to hear him say, "I'm proud of you, Claire". It meant the world to me."

"That hasn't changed for you, has it?"

"I think something about your childhood or your parents stay with everyone," she told him. "Mine just happens to be that."

"Yeah," he said, then went silent.

And there they were again. That point where they hit that something about Jack, or perhaps just about his childhood, that he didn't want to talk about. It was never hard to know when they got there. Jack never seemed to bother to hide emotions like that from her. She wanted him to trust her with whatever it was he was hiding too. They were friends, even if nothing more, and they talked about nearly everything else. She wanted to hear about this too.

She saw him reach down and for a second she thought he might be going for the Scotch he kept in his bottom drawer. He either changed his mind or she was wrong because he just began talking instead.

"That's true," he said. "My father's been dead just about ten years now and I'm still terrified of him."

Claire looked shocked and a bit horrified. The way that had sounded she should be, and it had been just as bad as it had sounded.

"Jack," she said, when it seemed that he was not going to continue "What happened?"

"You know that my father was a cop, right? I know you do, I've told you. Well, when I was a kid I wanted to be a cop too. Like my old man. I looked up to him. He always told me, though, that being a cop wasn't good enough for me. I was going to law school So I did, and got strait As. I didn't just get strait As there either. I've only ever gotten one B in my life and when my father found out he was drunk. I got the tar beaten out of me.

"My father never let me lose, Claire. Losing just wasn't allowed in my house. Not for my brother, not for me, not even for my sister. I lost a fight once and I was terrified of telling my father. It was my good luck that he wasn't drunk when he found out about that. Instead he taught me to fight."

Claire's expression was soft and sympathetic. That was about the best she could do though. What could you say to that? What could you possible do to help? Say that you were sorry? The damage John James McCoy Sr. had inflicted was long since done. Sorry would help no one. The number and depth of the emotional scars inflicted by something would be far to vast to count. Nothing superficial like apologetic words was going to do much. There had to be something better to say to him. Words that conveyed something more than that. Something that told him how horrible she thought it was and that something like that should have never happened--even if it did.

Besides, somehow she couldn't help but think that 'sorry' was the type of thing he wouldn't have wanted to hear anyway. True, when it came right down to it she really didn't know him that much or that well but that just didn't seem the thing to do. He probably just avoided all this so much that he thought he was mostly past it anyway. Who knew, maybe he was.

Whether he was past it or not, it did explain a few thing about him. His competitiveness, his attitudes towards certain defenses, a lot of it. As one would expect, it had had a major impact on young Jack McCoy. He'd been carrying all this around for years.

She still had no idea what to do, or say. She stayed silent and just watched him, trying to think of something to say. Something appropriate and with worth. Nothing so empty as the type of words that immediately came to mind.

He saved her from having to say anything. He'd probably seen that she was struggling to find the right thing.

"Don't get me wrong here, Claire," he told her. "He was a bastard--sober or drunk, but he was only violent when he was drunk."

"How did you deal with it all? How did all three of you deal with it?" she asked, referring to he, his younger brother and sister as she finally found her tongue.

"Mostly what I remember about it is being scared of him and yet longing to be the son he wanted. The love of a child is strange that way."

"It is," she agreed. "Has it changed now that you're older?"

"Not a bit. It never does."

Claire had been playing with Jack all day, lightheartedly teasing him and having a blast doing it. It had made the day easier to get through. They'd fallen a bit behind and it seemed that all there was to do was paperwork--the type of stuff she really, _really_ hated doing.

They were working on a case together in Jack's office when Claire first noticed it. Noticed how Jack seemed to be laying it on thicker than usual that night and how she'd been lapping it right up. He'd been smiling more, cracking jokes and being more than a bit goofy. She loved that side of him. It was just as sexy to her as the dedicated and powerful EADA she worked for, just in a different sense.

Fact was, though, that right now _he_ was playing with _her_. He was getting back at her for playing with him all day.

Two could play at that game.

She loved competing with Jack. He loved competition and he loved winning. It was wonderful to see him try his hardest to do it because he was in his element when he was competing. He radiated power and confidence and it made her melt like a popsicle left on a hot sidewalk in the summer. With all that she'd probably lose the game but even when she lost at this game she won. She got to see Jack on one of his best and most attractive levels, and that was worth losing to her any day. He was the one who hated losing, not her.

This time, though, she ended up almost losing more than she thought she would. During the course of their little work session they'd ended up amazingly close together on the couch-- close enough to feel each other's breath. It seemed as though Jack was about to reach in to kiss her but she pulled away before he could actually make a move to do it.

A near miss. How perfect. This was _exactly _what she needed. Fighting away an almost teenage crush as she was made this an absolutely wonderful turn of events.

Not.

"So I dunno. I really like the job and a lot of my co-workers but my boss's ethics . . . It was pretty over the line, Claire."

"Why not go ahead and quit? There are plenty of jobs out there waiting for you. Remember how many people wanted you back when you'd just graduated? Now you've got experience. You can't lose."

"I suppose you're right," said Maria, Claire's best friend since her Junior year of high school. "I'm just a bit shaky about it."

Claire nodded and stirred her soda around a bit with her straw. She could understand that. If she found out Adam or Jack had nearly criminal, seriously criminal not just bad prosecutorial, ethics she wasn't sure she'd be able to quit. Especially if it were Adam. She wasn't sure she'd want to leave Jack behind. Even if it were Jack she wasn't sure she could do it. She liked her job.

Claire saw a hand being waved in front of her face. "This is mission control to Claire Kincaid. Please come in Claire."

"Sorry," said Claire as she pulled herself out of her thoughts. She hadn't even realized she'd zoned out.

"What were you thinking about?"

"Whether I'd leave if I found out Adam was nearly criminal."

"More like whether or not you'd be able to pull yourself away from your sexy boss," Maria snickered.

Claire turned red.

"Aww, Claire. I can read you like a book. There's a lot more to this than you've told me. If you'll just spill then we can get on with our lives," Maria prodded.

"It's complicated," Claire responded, trying to evade the question.

"When isn't it?" she asked. "C'mon Claire. I'm your best friend. You can tell me anything."

Claire sighed. She was going to end up telling her anyway. Why not now? She had a bit of time before she had to get back to the office.

"All right," she said. "I need to talk to someone anyway. If I don't I think I'll burst or go crazy or _something_."

"This is gonna be good," said Maria with a broad smile. Claire gave her a look. "Just kidding, sweety. It was a little joke--sue me."

So Claire told her everything. The drinks, the rumors, the looks, the dinners, the near miss just a few days before, everything. She told her about how her control was slipping. How it had been since that day in court. How she wasn't sure if she would be able to hold off.

"But why hold back then? Claire, if you like him that much--"

"Am I the only one here who remembers Joel? Look at what happened there. I was censured. I thought my career was over."

"Jack's not Joel. Joel was a jerk. A _married_ jerk. Besides he was like thirty years older than you. Jack's only like twenty years older than you. Joel Thayer was just one young and inexperienced, blah, blah, blah girl's bad judgement."

"How do I know my judgement is any better now?" Claire asked, voicing a fear that had been bouncing around her head for a long time.

"Well he sounds real great to me."

"You only know what I've you," Claire pointed out. "I must've said the same kinds of things about Joel."

"Yes and no."

"That's definitive."

"Sorry," Maria sniffed. "Well I could meet him myself and find out. All I've ever seen of him is stuff from newscasts. From what I can see you're pretty tight considering how long you've known each other."

"You're kidding!"

"Hey, hey," said Maria in a calming tone. "I can only see it because I've got inside information. I doubt anyone else in the audience can tell."

"Good," said Claire with a relieved sigh. "It's bad enough the stuff they say in the office."

"Speaking of the office don't you have my scarf sitting in your desk drawer?"

"Yeah . . ." said Claire, narrowing her eyes a bit.

"I'm gonna come with you and you're going to give it back now. Maybe if I'm lucky you'll get to introduce me to Jack."

"You're insane, Maria."

"So what else is new?" Maria replied flippantly. "Come on," she said, getting up and holding out an arm for Claire.

Claire shook her head and got up as well. She hooked arms with Maria and they strolled the three blocks back to the DA's office together. It reminded her of the sort of stuff they'd done when they were teenagers. They'd been real loons. They were the same way now only they were wearing suits now instead of jeans and tight shirts.

They lost their playful edge when they got to the office. It was a place for work--not play. Claire didn't want to damage her reputation any more that she already had.

In the end, after having met Jack in person, Maria decided that Claire had more self control than she thought she did. She was so professional with Jack--despite the fact that Maria knew that what she really wanted to do was rip his clothes off.

Jack had never liked Harold Fletcher. He never would either. Fletcher was an incompetent, skirt-chasing fool. There was nothing that Jack disliked more than a fool--especially the ones that somehow managed to pass the bar exam.

Especially when they chose to try and flirt with his attractive lady assistants.

Fletcher had been around this legal circle long enough to know better than to do that. He may have been foolish but there were some things even an idiot like Fletcher should be able to figure out. That Claire, being Jack's assistant, was off limits should be at the top of that list. He could excuse Fletcher he thought he might not know but he was trying a case against _both_ of them. He knew she was working with Jack yet he still insisted on cornering her and trying to ask her out. She was giving him all the 'not interested' signals she politely could but he wasn't even showing any signs of backing off.

Even if Fletcher wasn't smart enough to be scared of him, the man could at least have some sort of respect for Claire--at least enough to back off when she gave him the signal to. It made his blood boil to see Fletcher keep at it.

The only reason he hadn't done something about it himself was because he knew that Claire would string him up for not letting her get rid of him herself. Feminist women could be a real pain in the ass sometimes.

He continued to watch Fletcher bumble to impress Claire. She was perfectly calm, perfectly polite and perfectly frustrated by Fletcher's tenacity. She was showing all her telltale signs of agitation--the little things he'd come to associate with Claire being upset. He'd picked up on them quickly. When you watched her closely they were hard to miss.

She was still trying her best to get away from Fletcher. At least he didn't seem to have gotten to be truly obnoxious yet. There was only so much Claire could take and obnoxiousness by some half-assed lawyer would definitely be over the threshold.

She made a move to leave Fletcher and he cut her off, saying something else to her. Jack saw Claire's posture slump a bit with disappointment. Nothing really noticeable, just a little bit.

It was more than Jack could take though. He'd stood by and watched long enough. That was over the line as far as he was concerned. Fletcher was going to stop this right now. He'd try to interfere as little as possible, he still didn't want to pick a fight with Claire, but he had to try _something_.

He grabbed his briefcase from where he'd put it down and moved toward Fletcher and Claire. He hoped that if Fletcher saw him hovering around a bit he would run off. No such luck. He held his ground, an unusual move for him. Jack always cleared the floor with him in the courtroom and Fletcher had no reason to believe he wouldn't willingly do the same outside the courtroom as well. The man was at least two inches shorter than _Claire_ and scrawny. He wouldn't stand a chance.

He was going to interfere. He couldn't see any other way for him to get rid of Fletcher. This certainly wasn't working and if something didn't work he adjusted. Fuck Claire's feminism anyway.

He planned on going up to Claire and saying something to her. He didn't know what but his presence right there with Claire should scare Fletcher, especially if he and Claire flirted as they usually did.

Jack began to catch snatches of the conversation between Fletcher and Claire as he moved closer.

" . . . Just grab a drink with me and we can try and work out a deal."

"I told you, Jack won't deal. Whatever I think really doesn't matter."

"Well if we work out something good--"

"I've got plans anyway."

"I'm free all week," he stated, inching closer to her.

She casually moved away as much as she could. "I won't deal either. Now, I have _work_ to get done."

She tried to walk away yet again. He cornered her yet again.

"Maybe if we talk about it you'll--"

Jack found his opening. Temper raging quietly under control he stepped toward Claire and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Claire," he said in way of greeting as she turned to face him. His hand slid down to the small of her back.

She had a big smile on her face. She loved the feeling of having his hand there. It was the most forward thing he'd ever done and she loved it. Sparks flew, traveling from his hand all the way up her spine.

She didn't like _why_ he was doing it though. He was doing it because he was trying to protect her from Fletcher. She didn't _want_ him to protect her. She could protect _herself_ just fine. She'd forgive him though. She'd gotten mad at him before and he'd always been very easy to forgive. Besides, this was far better than dealing with Fletcher for another five minutes anyway.

"Dinner tonight?" he asked.

"Yeah, of course."

"Back to the office then." Jack looked away from Claire's eyes and nodded at Fletcher. "I'll see you when the trial resumes."

Fletcher just nodded pitifully at Jack and Claire as they walked off together.


	5. Part Five

Jack was hungry. He figured he'd order some Chinese for dinner then he and Claire could hunker down on his couch to eat. He was sure she hadn't eaten anything yet. He went ahead and walked to her desk to ask her what she wanted. She'd probably want half the menu, unless she was sick or something. For such a tiny person she could sure put away the Chinese.

He found her sleeping peacefully at her desk. Her head was cradled in her arms on the desk surface and she seemed to be having a pleasant dream. A smile was spread across her lips.

He stood near her and watched her for a few minutes. It was the type of thing he could _never_ do when she was awake but he could do it now. He could look at her beautiful face all he wanted without interruption.

He heard her mumble something. He couldn't quite make out what it was so he put his ear next to her mouth to listen. Her warm breath tickled his ear as she whispered things her sleep.

As she whispered his name in her sleep.

She was dreaming about him. Claire was dreaming about him and it sure didn't sound like his dream-self was having coffee with her. Talk about the unexpected.

She quieted. He waited for a while to see if she would say anything else but nothing else slipped from her mouth. Damn.

He should probably wake her. As interested as he was in what she was dreaming this was no place to sleep. She needed to go home and sleep in a bed. Today was Friday. He'd tell her that if she showed up in the morning tomorrow he'd fire her.

He shook her a bit, whispering her name in her ear.

She blinked a couple times, then picked herself up off her desk. She caught sight of him and a her cheeks reddened. It wasn't exactly the greatest thing in the world to wake up with your boss watching you after you've just been having a dirty dream about him.

Her blush began to fade. At least she was off the clock when she fell asleep. "I'm sorry, Jack. I--"

"Don't worry about it," he said, staring strait into her eyes. "You should go home, Claire."

"I will in a bit," she responded. She broke eye contact with him and checked her desk to see where She'd put a case file before she'd laid her head down. "I've just gotta finish up a few things."

"Uh uh," he said. "It can wait. Go home."

"Jack . . ."

She still had a lot to get done.

"It can wait, Claire." He was looking her strait in the eye again. "Listen, I'll walk you to your car."

"It's in the shop. I'm taking the subway."

Taking the New York subway? At night? Not over his dead body. Jack had prosecuted people who'd caused some of those subway horror stories on his way up the ladder. He wasn't even going to let there be a chance that Claire would fall victim to a crime like that.

"No you're not," he said, giving her no room to argue. "I'm giving you a ride home. My motorcycle is a lot safer than the subway."

She looked away and tried to hide her smile. She knew she couldn't argue with about any of this. She'd seen him like this before and he simply did not give in. He'd be giving her a ride home if he had to toss her over his shoulder and carry her. All she could do was give up.

Although that whole thing with the tossing over the shoulder did sound rather manly and sexy.

Whoops. Shouldn't be thinking like that.

Besides, with the motorcycle she'd get to wrap her arms around him--real tight so she would fall off. That was ten times better.

Dammit, there she went again. She was like some high school freshman with a crush on that cute student teacher who way too old for her.

"Good," he said, taking her smile as a sign of acceptance. He stood up and went toward his office. "I'm gonna give you a pair of my spare jeans for the ride."

She looked at him for a second then laughed. "Jack you're a lot taller than me."

"And bigger than you," he added as he moved into his office. "Trust me though. If we give you a belt and roll them up a bit you'll be fine. You don't want to be wearing that skirt. I can tell you that much."

"I guess you're right," she said as she took the pants and a belt from him. "I'll be back in back in a few minutes."

"Take your time."

She was back out in under five minutes.

"Finally, a woman who can get dressed in a reasonable amount of time."

"Very funny, Jack," she responded. "Could I hang this up your rack until I can take it home?"

"Not a problem," he said.

They went into his office and she hung up her skirt and suit jacket. He grabbed a sweater from his rack and pulled it over his head. He grabbed his helmet as well, then followed Claire out of his office and to her cubicle. Her purse and jacket were hanging on a stand next to her desk and he went ahead and got them for her, helping her into the jacket. He gave her a quick rub on the shoulder, accompanied by a smile and then walked with her to elevator.

"You ever ridden a motorcycle before, Claire?" he asked as he punched the button for the parking garage.

"Not since my first year of law school," she answered.

"Well, you'll know what you're doing then. It's like riding your bicycle--"

"You never forget," she finished for him with a laugh. "I know."

He smiled at her and she smiled right back. She was still tired, and really felt like just leaning against him and falling asleep again. She refrained. He was still her boss. She hung onto that fact as though her life depended on it. As long as she remember that and what had happened to her before she could make sure nothing happened. She hoped anyway.

The elevator stopped and opened to reveal the parking garage.

"So where are you parked?" she asked as they stepped out of the elevator.

"This way," he answered, leading. "It's not too far."

They reached the bike and Jack unlocked it. He pulled the extra helmet from the compartment and handed it to Claire. It occurred to her that he didn't have to bring it down from his office. He usually kept the extra in his office. That cheat. Oh well, she'd rake him over the coals for it later.

He pulled on his own helmet and mounted the bike. She sighed then pulled on the spare and got on behind him. She wrapped her arms tightly around him, feeling his hard chest muscles underneath her arms. She couldn't help but smile at the thought that she was going to be spending the entire trip with her arms wrapped around this body. She was just happy Jack couldn't see her smile. He could probably tell how happy she was about this by the way she was holding him but oh well. Let him notice then. As long as she could at least pretend he didn't.

He started up the motorcycle, then revved it a bit, using the pause to enjoy the feeling of Claire's slight body pressed up against his own.

"Ready?"

"Yup."

He took off, squealing his tires just for the hell of it like a teenage boy showing off to his girlfriend. He paused near the garage's exit, then turned into traffic. He weaved in and out of the cars on the road, knowing that with his smaller size he could get away with it no problem.

He heard Claire laugh behind him and squeeze tighter. She seemed to love it. He was glad. He loved it too.

She shouted directions to him as they went and as they neared where she told him her building was it dawned on him that she'd had him take the long way to get there. He pulled in front of the building and parked, then turned off his engine. She pulled off her helmet and dismounted the bike.

"I'll walk you up," he said, as he got off the bike too.

"Thanks Jack," she said and smiled at him. It seemed that she'd been smiling at him an awful lot tonight.

He followed her up the walk to her building and waited as she unlocked the first of the two front doors to the building. They went in and started up the steps.

"You know," said Claire over her shoulder to him as they climbed. "I'd forgotten how much I loved doing that."

"I noticed we took the long way here."

"Did you?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I guess I was just having a lot of fun," said Claire as she stepped of the flight of stairs onto her floor. She stood near the banister waiting for him to climb the last couple stairs.

"We could do it again sometime," he suggested. "Maybe next weekend. We could spend the day tearing around the city, pissing off as many people as we can."

"Sounds like a lot of fun," she laughed. "We'll definitely have to do that."

She reached her apartment and unlocked the door. She opened the door and stepped inside.

"Do you wanna come in for a couple of minutes and have coffee or talk or something?"

She leaned against the door frame and looked up at him with those big brown eyes. He remembered the first time he'd seen them. They'd left a big impression on him then and continued to right now as they made his heart melt slowly in his chest.

He wanted to come in right now but he'd seen her asleep at her desk. He knew she was tired and he knew she needed to sleep. He declined. He would have another, better chance when they went for that ride he'd been talking about. He'd make sure it happened soon and he'd make his move then.

"All right," she answered, picking herself up from the door frame. She stood there for a moment in the doorway just looking at him. "Thanks for taking me home, Jack."

Before she could think to stop herself she reached up to kiss him softly on the lips. She had every intention of pulling away after the first second but she suddenly found she didn't want to at all. She lingered there and it wasn't more than a few seconds before Jack got over his shock. He took her hand in the one of his that wasn't holding his helmet and squeezed it as he deepened the kiss. She pulled him into her apartment and he pushed her up against the door, using their bodies to close the door.

They stood there for a moment exploring one another's mouths before he abandoned her mouth to start down her neck, leaving a burning trail of kisses in his wake.

She moaned softly. She knew it probably wasn't a good idea to be letting this man be doing this to her. In fact she knew this was a very bad idea but all her doubts had disappeared the moment her lips had touched his. She wanted this. She wanted him and all she could think of was how good it felt for him to be doing what he was doing.

She felt his sweater underneath her hands and began to pull it off him. He paused for a moment to pull it over his head and then went back to kissing her. He peeled her jacket off her body and his nimble fingers began to quickly unbutton her blouse.

She captured his mouth again and pushed against him, driving him toward her living room. His hands quit their work on her blouse for a moment as he moved with her through the apartment as she directed him toward her bedroom. They reached the room and fell onto the bed together, bodies tangled together like vines.

She began to work frantically on the buttons of his starch white shirt. She wanted to feel him against her. Him, not his shirt.

As she fumbled with his buttons, he tugged at her, well his, belt. Clothes came off at a terrifying pace. Neither of them seemed to want to slow down in the least. Claire's drowsiness had evaporated in favor of her passions and Jack was too caught up to think much of anything as well.

They spent much of the night as such. They had nowhere to be in the morning and even if they had it was likely that they wouldn't have cared at all.


End file.
